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Chai is a tea-themed board game as soothing as tea itself. Players collect flavour tiles to create cups of tea that fulfil the orders of their customers.
Reasons To Love Chai:
Beautiful Relaxation:
I first played this board game in a different city, where I had been staying for some training days. I was anxious to get home, but meeting up with a friend to play Chai there, I felt at ease again and even through I was still away, I got that calm ‘home’ feeling as we played. Arguably, the most soothing aspect of this game are the beautiful customer cards, which depict various different people enjoying their tea orders in a variety of settings, for example a person drinking a jasmine oolong tea taking a leisurely bike ride with an adorable puppy in the basket, and another person relaxing in a library with a book and a sweet ginger rooibos milky tea. These key details set the scene for a soothing game aesthetic that aids proper relaxion.
Quality Components That Provide 100% ASMR:
There is certainly no disappointment from Chai when opening up the box- the included components make this game well worth the money. Amongst all of the wonderful components, the winners are the intricately-patterned tea cups, 1 for each player, that get filled with the ingredient tokens when each tea order is made. Not forgetting the other components, including the beautifully coloured flavour tokens: lilac for lavender, yellow for lemon, red for berries, green for mint, sandy for ginger and white for jasmine, and the many unique customer cards. The tactile appeal of the game is immense, from the 3D swirling design on the cups, to the pushing along of the flavour tokens across the market after each turn, the carved-effect tea leaves taken by each player and the sound of the flavour tokens as they clink into the tea cups. Not forgetting the thermometer that is moved to a higher temperature each round, satisfyingly reflecting the heating-up of the game each round until the game end is reached.
Ease of Gameplay:
Satisfyingly, each player is provided with a tip sheet that aids play, an addition that every game could benefit from as it eliminates the need to keep pausing the game to dig out (and in my family, debate over!,) the rules. Also, the gameplay is fairly simple, whilst the beautiful variety of components keep it interesting. The main steps in the game are as follows: either visiting the pantry to collect pantry items/spices (chai spices/milk/sugar), or the visiting the market to collect flavour tokens (e.g lemon, berries), then fulfilling an order, if possible, and being ‘paid’ for it. This makes the game an all-rounder that can be enjoyed by children (ideally 8 years plus) and adults alike.
Other features that keep this relatively simple game interesting is the additional rules exclusive to 3-5 player games, for example, a 5-point bonus for the player who fulfils the most tea orders. Another wonderful key feature in Chai are the dice that, to my delight, enable solo play.
A Few Drawbacks of Chai
Plastic Pieces:
Although the plastic flavour counters are robust, and are satisfying to fill the tea cups with, they aren’t kind to the environment, so would certainly be better in a more sustainable material.
The Ability Cards:
It could be argued that the ability cards don’t add much to the game. To be honest, I personally choose to leave them out from gameplay. Yes, they enable extra bonuses, for example swapping owned spices for those sought after from the pantry. However, they count as a trip to the market would, and they cost game ‘money’. Also, the way they are visually explained on each card is not clear or obvious as to what they mean, and they take up space on an already busy game table.
Chai Overall:
If you like beautiful, calming board games, you need to play Chai! If you like Chai, why not try the expansion: High Tea, which provides double-sided boards, and adorable order additions such as a classic afternoon tea with scones, sandwiches and cute cakes!
